Heliophysics Science Division, Code 670

Technology Development

Technology Development

HSD pursues advanced technology developments enabling new science and
promoting the Nation’s space technology infrastructure. The efforts are
supported through competed opportunities such as the Heliophysics
Technology and Instrument Development for Science (H-TIDeS) program,
cooperation with private industry through programs such as Small
Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology
Transfer (STTR), and a limited internal R&D program. The technology
development activities within HSD are coordinated by Dr. Nicholas
Paschalidis, Senior Project Scientist for Technology Advancement with
support from the Heliophysics Line of Business.

HSD technology development includes:

Instruments for remote sensing of the sun in visible/UV/EUV/X-rays and gamma rays with emphasis on advancing spectral and spatial resolution

Instruments for in-situ and remote sensing of the heliosphere and the magnetosphere / ionosphere of the Earth and other planets, such as advanced plasma spectrometers, ion and neutral composition and neutral winds, Langmuir probes, energetic particle sensors, neutral atom imagers, UV imagers, and electric and magnetic field instruments

Miniaturization of instruments for accommodation on CubeSat and other small platforms

Advanced modeling and visualization technologies for space weather research

Technologies for constellation and precision formation flying of small satellites for future multi-satellite missions

A new 6U Cubesat development - Dellingr – with a goal to offer to the research community a reliable 6U bus for future missions

HSD builds instruments for missions on all scales, including major
instruments such as the MMS/FPI Dual Electron Spectrometers and the
Solar Wind Composition Analyzer. Here we illustrate three examples of
recent HSD instruments that are flying or will soon fly on CubeSats, a
focus on miniaturization consistent with the thrust of the Decadal
Survey.

Firefly

The NSF-funded Firefly CubeSat was launched on 19 November 19 2013 and
is now returning data on Terrestrial Gamma-ray Flashes (TGFs),
bremsstrahlung radiation produced by 10-30 MeV electrons that are
thought to be accelerated upwards over thunderstorms; a fraction of
these electrons could escape the atmosphere and enter the Van Allen
radiation belts. Firefly’s highly integrated design accommodates three
instruments (VLF radio receiver, optical photodiodes, and a novel fast scintillation detector) in a 3U package.

CeRES

The Compact Radiation Belt Explorer (CeRES) is the first NASA-funded
CubeSat mission. The PI is Shri Kanekal (672, pictured). This 3U CubeSat
will explore the charged-particle dynamics of the Van Allen belts by
measuring precipitating 1-5 MeV electrons and 15-50 MeV protons with a
spectral time resolution of 5 ms. The Miniaturized Electron and Proton
Telescope (MERiT), based on a stack of silicon solid state detectors, is
being built at GSFC for launch in 2015.

Measuring Ionospheric Composition for EXOCUBE

The EXOCUBE mission will measure the densities of all significant
neutral and ionized atom species in the ionosphere, including [O], [H],
[He], [O+], [H+], [He+], and total ion density, in order to explore
physical processes (such as charge exchange) and constrain modeling of
the upper atmosphere. The PI is Robert Kerr of Scientific Solutions,
Inc.; partners include California Polytechnic State U., GSFC, and U.
Wisconsin Madison.

In less than 9 months, the GSFC team, led by S. Jones (674) and N.
Paschalidis (670), developed a miniaturized Ion and Neutral Mass
Spectrometer (INMS) that they will soon deliver for launch in October
2014.

From the complex interactions on the sun’s surface and within its
corona out to the boundaries of the heliosphere, we are witnessing
the development of ground breaking scientific discovery and
technological innovation across all disciplines in Heliophysics
science and research. Dr. Paschalidis will present information on
time of flight (TOF) x Energy x angle particle analyzers, a family
of rad hard application specific integrated circuits (ASICs, TOF,
Energy, TRIO, CFD, PKD) and delay line imagers. The ASICs and delay
imagers were created by Dr. Paschalidis himself and have been flown
on missions across science mission directorate including IMAGE,
CASSINI, MESSENGER, STEREO, IBEX, PLUTO, RBSP, MMS, JUNO, and will
be flown on BebiColombo, Solar Orbiter, Solar Probe Plus, JUICE and
also Cubesat missions CeREs and Cusp+. New innovations on neutral/charges
particles will be discussed including a compact Ion and Neutral
Mass Spec with temperature/drift/wind capability for recent Cube/Small
Satellite missions including NSF’s ExoCube1 and ExoCube2, and GSFC
Dellingr and PetitSat. The presentation will expand on a diverse portfolio
of particles, fields and photon imaging instruments, including platform
requirements for constellation and precision formation flying.